1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to aircraft collision avoidance systems and, more particularly, to an aircraft collision avoidance system which is designed to minimize and/or eliminate damage to an aircraft during ground transportation of the same to and/or from, for example, a hangar or other facility.
2. Background Art
Collision avoidance systems have been known in the aviation industry for years. While collision avoidance systems have been known in the art, issues relative to system portability and multi-aircraft usability remain largely problematic.
Aircraft are typically stored in hangars or outside along other aircraft. A common problem in transporting aircraft from a hangar to the tarmac, and vice-versa, is a phenomenon known as “hangar rash.” Hangar rash is caused by improper ground handling of an aircraft and commonly occurs when the aircraft is being pushed or pulled from the hanger by a vehicle, such as a tractor. An inattentive or careless tractor operator may inadvertently cause a wing, horizontal stabilizer, and/or vertical stabilizer of the aircraft to contact, for example, another aircraft, a hanger wall, and/or a hanger door—causing extremely expensive and potentially catastrophic damage to the aircraft.
Some aircraft are provided with collision warning devices fabricated into the wings, stabilizers and/or nose cones of the aircraft. These devices suffer from numerous drawbacks including, but not limited to, the fact that the devices are integral instruments of the aircraft. Typically, this means that an individual operating the collision warning device must possess required FAA certifications which are necessary to legally operate the plane itself in order to operate the collision warning devices.
Thus the need exists for an aircraft collision avoidance system, which is portable and facilitates rapid installation, removal, and use of the collision avoidance system toward multi-aircraft utilization and avoidance of strict FAA certifications associated with collision avoidance systems which are fully integrated into an aircraft.